Discovery Deficiency Meet-and-Confer Letter - Maryland

Discovery Deficiency Meet-and-Confer Letter — Maryland

[FIRM NAME]
[Street Address]
[City, Maryland ZIP]
Telephone: ([____]) [____]-[________]
Facsimile: ([____]) [____]-[________]
Email: [________________________________]

[__/__/____]

VIA [________________________________]
(Email / Certified Mail / Hand Delivery)

[Opposing Counsel Name]
[Law Firm Name]
[Street Address]
[City, State ZIP]

Re: [Case Name], Circuit Court for [County], Case No. [________________]
Discovery Deficiency — Good Faith Conference Letter (Md. Rule 2-431)

Dear [Mr./Ms./Mx.] [________________________________]:

I. Purpose of This Letter and Maryland's Good Faith Conference Requirement

This letter documents [Requesting Party]'s discovery concerns and begins the good-faith discussion process under Maryland Rule 2-431 before any motion under Rule 2-432.

Maryland Rule 2-431 — Good Faith Certificate:

A discovery dispute need not be considered by the court unless the attorney seeking court action files a certificate describing good-faith attempts to discuss and resolve the dispute with opposing counsel and certifying that they could not reach agreement on the disputed issues. The certificate must include:

• The date, time, and circumstances of each discussion or attempted discussion

The court need not consider a discovery dispute without the required certificate. Document each attempted discussion before seeking court action.

PLEASE RESPOND IN WRITING NO LATER THAN [__/__/____] (10 business days from the date of this letter) to initiate the required good-faith discussion. If you do not respond or make yourself available to discuss these deficiencies, [Requesting Party] will certify your non-response to the court in any motion filed.

II. Factual Background

On [__/__/____], [Requesting Party] served the following discovery upon [Responding Party]:

☐ Interrogatories (Set [____]), consisting of [____] interrogatories
☐ Requests for Production of Documents (Set [____]), consisting of [____] requests
☐ Requests for Admission (Set [____]), consisting of [____] requests
☐ Other: [________________________________]

Responses were due on [__/__/____]. For each applicable request, check the later of 30 days after service or 15 days after the responding party's initial pleading or motion is due (Md. Rules 2-421(b), 2-422(c), and 2-424(b)), and account for any applicable court order or agreed extension.

On [__/__/____], [Responding Party] served responses. Those responses are deficient in the respects identified below.

☐ No response has been received despite the deadline having passed.
☐ Responses were served but are substantively deficient as described below.
☐ An extension was agreed upon; the extended deadline of [__/__/____] has now passed.

III. Maryland Discovery Rules — Applicable Standards

A. Interrogatories (Md. Rule 2-421)

• Responses due within 30 days of service or 15 days after the initial pleading or motion is due, whichever is later (Md. Rule 2-421(b))
• A party may serve 30 interrogatories without leave of court; additional interrogatories require leave or stipulation (Md. Rule 2-421(a))
• Answers must be signed under oath by the party (Md. Rule 2-421(b))
• Objections must be signed by the attorney and specify the grounds
• A party may respond by producing business records if: (1) the answer may be derived from those records, (2) the burden of deriving the answer is substantially the same for both parties, and (3) the party specifies the records in sufficient detail

B. Requests for Production (Md. Rule 2-422)

• Responses due within 30 days of service or 15 days after the initial pleading or motion is due, whichever is later (Md. Rule 2-422(c))
• Documents must be produced as they are kept in the usual course of business or organized and labeled to correspond to each category in the request (Md. Rule 2-422(d))
• If inspection is not permitted, the responding party must state the grounds for each objection with specificity

C. Requests for Admission (Md. Rule 2-424)

• Responses due within 30 days of service or 15 days after the initial pleading or motion is due, whichever is later (Md. Rule 2-424(b))
• Failure to timely respond results in the matter being deemed admitted (Md. Rule 2-424(b))
• Denials must specifically deny the matter or set forth in detail reasons why the party cannot truthfully admit or deny (Md. Rule 2-424(b))
• "Lack of information" requires a statement that a reasonable inquiry was made and the information knowable is insufficient (Md. Rule 2-424(b))

D. Scope of Discovery (Md. Rule 2-402)

Maryland discovery is broad: parties may obtain discovery regarding any matter, not privileged, that is relevant to the subject matter of the action. Maryland follows proportionality principles under its discovery rules.

E. Duty to Supplement (Md. Rule 2-401(e))

Md. Rule 2-401(e) requires a party that has responded to a discovery request or order to supplement the response promptly when it obtains further material information before trial.

F. Good Faith Conference (Md. Rule 2-431)

Rule 2-431 calls for a certificate describing good-faith attempts to discuss and resolve a discovery dispute before seeking court action. The certificate must identify the date, time, and circumstances of each discussion or attempted discussion; the court need not consider a dispute without it.

G. Sanctions (Md. Rule 2-433)

Maryland Rule 2-433 provides significant sanctions for failure to comply with discovery rules, including both sanctions without a prior court order (for categorical failures) and sanctions following a court order compelling discovery.

IV. Identified Deficiencies — Interrogatories

The following interrogatory responses are deficient:

Specific deficiency types identified (check all that apply):

☐ No Verification / Oath — Md. Rule 2-421(b) requires interrogatory answers to be signed under oath by the party. No sworn verification accompanies the responses to Interrogatory Nos. [____].

☐ Incomplete Answer — Interrogatory No. [____] asks for [________________________________] but the response provides only [________________________________], omitting [________________________________].

☐ Boilerplate / General Objections — The block of general objections is impermissible. Each objection must be specifically tied to the individual interrogatory and state the grounds with specificity.

☐ Improper Overbreadth Objection Without Substantive Response — The objection to Interrogatory No. [____] is not accompanied by any substantive answer. The party must answer to the extent the request is not objectionable.

☐ Improper Burden Objection Without Factual Support — No factual showing supports the undue burden claim for Interrogatory No. [____].

☐ Business Records Response Deficient — If responding by producing business records, [Responding Party] must: (1) confirm the burden of deriving the answer is substantially the same for both parties, (2) specify the records in sufficient detail, and (3) make the records available for inspection.

☐ Failure to Supplement — Information material to Interrogatory No. [____] has been acquired since the initial response, and [Responding Party] has not supplemented as required by Md. Rule 2-401(e).

☐ Other: [________________________________]

V. Identified Deficiencies — Requests for Production

The following requests for production responses are deficient:

Specific deficiency types identified (check all that apply):

☐ Blanket Objections Without Substantive Response — RFP Nos. [____] received only objections with no indication of whether any responsive documents exist or will be produced.

☐ No Privilege Log — Documents are being withheld on privilege grounds for RFP Nos. [____] but no privilege log has been provided. [Responding Party] must identify each withheld document by date, author, recipients, subject matter, and privilege claimed.

☐ Incomplete Production — RFP No. [____] seeks [________________________________], but the production appears incomplete because [________________________________].

☐ No Date Certain for Production — The response to RFP No. [____] states that documents are forthcoming without specifying a date. Please confirm a date certain.

☐ Documents Not Organized or Labeled — Documents produced are not organized as kept in the usual course of business and are not labeled to correspond to each category in the request, as required by Md. Rule 2-422(d).

☐ ESI Issues — ESI responsive to RFP No. [____] has not been produced or was not produced in a reasonably usable format. Please propose an ESI production protocol.

☐ Other: [________________________________]

VI. Identified Deficiencies — Requests for Admission

The following requests for admission responses are deficient:

Specific deficiency types identified (check all that apply):

☐ Evasive Denial — RFA No. [____] was denied in a manner that does not specifically deny the matter or explain why it cannot be truthfully admitted or denied, as required by Md. Rule 2-424(b).

☐ Improper "Lack of Information" Response — RFA No. [____] claims insufficient information without stating that a reasonable inquiry was made, as required by Md. Rule 2-424(b).

☐ Improper Objection — The objection to RFA No. [____] is not well-founded. Requests for admission are proper as to facts, application of law to facts, and genuineness of documents.

☐ Deemed Admitted — No response to RFA Nos. [____] was timely served. Those matters are now deemed admitted under Md. Rule 2-424(b). Please advise whether [Responding Party] intends to move to withdraw or amend the admissions.

☐ Other: [________________________________]

VII. Privilege Log Deficiencies

A complete Maryland privilege log must identify each withheld document:

• Date of the document
• Author(s) and all recipient(s)
• General subject matter (without revealing privileged content)
• Privilege or protection claimed
• Whether the document is withheld in full or produced in redacted form

☐ No privilege log has been provided despite documents being withheld on privilege grounds.
☐ The privilege log provided is deficient because: [________________________________]
☐ Please provide a complete privilege log by [__/__/____].

VIII. MDEC / eFile Requirement

This matter is subject to Maryland Electronic Courts (MDEC) e-filing requirements. Any motion to compel filed in response to these deficiencies will be filed electronically through the MDEC system. Please ensure that all supplemental responses and correspondence are served by agreed electronic means.

IX. Demand for Supplementation

[Requesting Party] demands that [Responding Party] serve complete and sworn supplemental responses to all deficiencies identified above no later than:

[__/__/____] (the "Supplementation Deadline")

This deadline is [____] business days from the date of this letter.

X. Good Faith Conference Availability

[Requesting Party] is available to discuss the deficiencies identified in this letter (under Md. Rule 2-431) on the following dates and times (all Eastern Time):

• [__/__/____] at [____:____] [AM/PM]
• [__/__/____] at [____:____] [AM/PM]
• [__/__/____] at [____:____] [AM/PM]

Please contact the undersigned to schedule a conference or to propose alternative times. [Requesting Party] will document the date, time, and circumstances of any discussion for inclusion in the Md. Rule 2-431 certificate.

XI. Warning — Motion to Compel and Sanctions

If [Responding Party] fails to serve substantially complete supplemental responses by the Supplementation Deadline, or if the parties are unable to resolve disputes through the good-faith conference process, [Requesting Party] will file a Motion to Compel pursuant to Md. Rule 2-432.

The motion will include:

1. This letter as evidence of good-faith efforts
2. The Md. Rule 2-431 certificate describing discussions held (including date, time, and circumstances)
3. A request for reasonable attorney's fees and expenses under Md. Rule 2-433

Sanctions available under Md. Rule 2-433:

Under Md. Rule 2-433(a), where a party fails entirely to respond to interrogatories, requests for production, or fails to appear for a scheduled deposition, [Requesting Party] may seek sanctions without first obtaining an order compelling discovery, including:

• An order that the matter(s) be taken as established
• An order prohibiting [Responding Party] from supporting or opposing designated claims or defenses
• Striking pleadings in whole or in part
• Entry of a default judgment or dismissal of the action

Under Md. Rule 2-433(c), for failure to comply with a court order compelling discovery:

• Same sanctions as above, including default judgment or dismissal

Under Md. Rule 2-433(a), the court may also award reasonable costs and expenses, including attorney's fees, caused by the specified failure of discovery, subject to the rule's exceptions. Under Md. Rule 2-433(d), a granted or denied motion under Rules 2-403, 2-432, or 2-434 ordinarily triggers an expense award to the prevailing side, subject to substantial justification or other circumstances making the award unjust; a partially granted motion permits apportionment.

Note: Under Md. Rule 2-433(a), [Requesting Party] has the option to seek certain sanctions directly (without first filing a motion to compel) in cases of categorical failure to respond. If [Responding Party] has completely failed to respond to discovery, [Requesting Party] reserves the right to proceed directly under Md. Rule 2-433(a).

XII. Preservation Reminder

Please confirm that litigation holds remain in place for all potentially relevant documents and ESI, including email, text messages, electronic records, cloud storage, and physical documents in [Responding Party]'s possession, custody, or control.

XIII. Good Faith Certificate Record

This letter, along with documentation of any subsequent discussions, will form the basis of the good-faith certificate under Md. Rule 2-431 filed with any discovery motion in this matter. The certificate will specify the dates, times, and circumstances of all discussions and attempted discussions.

Sincerely,

______________________________
[Attorney Name], Maryland Attorney Number (AIS): [____]
[Law Firm Name]
[Address]
[City, Maryland ZIP]
([____]) [____]-[________]
[Email Address]
Counsel for [Party Name]

CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE

I hereby certify that on [__/__/____], a true and correct copy of the foregoing Discovery Deficiency Meet-and-Confer Letter was served upon:

[Opposing Counsel Name], [Law Firm], [Address]

☐ Electronic Mail: [________________________________]
☐ U.S. Mail, First Class, Postage Prepaid
☐ Certified Mail, Return Receipt Requested
☐ Hand Delivery
☐ Maryland MDEC Electronic Court Filing

______________________________
[Attorney Name]